A man found to have been linked to the killing of Surrey teen Maple Batalia more than five years ago will be sentenced this morning.
Last May, Gursimar Singh Bedi was found not guilty of manslaughter in relation to the killing Batalia.
However, he was found guilty of being an accessory after the fact.
The shooting took place on Sept. 28, 2011 and sent a community into mourning.
Batalia, 19, was gunned down in a parkade outside SFU Surrey after a late-night study session. She died later in hospital of three gunshot wounds to the torso and left arm. She also had 11 knife wounds on her head.
Batalia was alive when police arrived, but succumbed to her injuries in hospital in the early morning hours of Sept. 28.
Bedi’s co-accused, Gurjinder (“Gary”) Dhaliwal, was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 21 years after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in Batalia’s death.
During the trial, Crown contended that while Dhaliwal was the one to shoot Batalia – his ex-girlfriend – three times and slash her numerous times with a knife, it was Bedi who rented the car that laid in wait outside SFU Surrey.
It was also Bedi who tracked Batalia and reported her whereabouts to her killer, Crown counsel asserted.
“In doing so, Mr. Bedi served as the eyes and ears of Mr. Dhaliwal,” Crown said during trial.
Police found bullet casings and a knife at the crime scene and also examined a white Dodge Charger linked to the murder.
Inside the car investigators found a receipt from a car wash, a blood stain on a headlight control dial and a stain on the driver’s side sun visor.
There was also a bullet casing lodged under the hood of the car, the court heard.